Traffic lights Red, yellow and green
Red: stop at the limit line and stay stopped until the light turns green. Steady yellow: the red is coming; stop if you can do so safely, otherwise cross carefully. Green: go, once the intersection is clear.
CVC 21453(a) (red) · CVC 21452(a) (yellow) · CVC 21451(a) (green) · CA Driver's Handbook, "Traffic Signals"
What does a yellow light mean in California?
The red light comes next (CVC 21452(a)). Stop at the limit line if you can do so safely; if you cannot stop safely, cross the intersection carefully.
Why this rule exists
Most crashes at signals happen when drivers try to beat the red. Stopping for a yellow you can safely stop for removes that risk; stopping hard right at the line when you are too close can cause a rear-end crash instead.
Step by step on the road
- Watch the light as you come up to it. If it has been green for a while, be ready for the yellow.
- Red: stop at the limit line, or before the crosswalk if there is no line, and stay stopped until the light turns green.
- Steady yellow: stop if you can do so safely. If you are too close to stop safely, go on through carefully.
- Green: go, once the intersection is clear. Still yield to vehicles and pedestrians lawfully in the intersection or the crosswalk.
- Do not sit at a green light for no reason.
Common mistakes
- Speeding up to beat the yellow.
- Braking hard at the line on a yellow you were too close to stop for.
- Going on green while a pedestrian is still crossing in front of you.
- Stopping at a green light when nothing requires it.
On the DMV drive test
DL 955 lists two critical driving errors here: not stopping and waiting for the green at a red light, and making an unnecessary stop at a green light. On the DL 32 sheet each intersection you drive through is marked for traffic check, speed, yield and unnecessary stops, and each stop for braking, a full stop and the gap or limit line.
Based on the DMV’s Driving Test Criteria (DL 955) and its score sheet (DL 32). How the drive test works ›Questions people ask
Where do you stop at a red light?
At the marked limit line. If there is none, before the crosswalk; if there is no crosswalk either, before the intersection (CVC 21453(a)).
Do you have to yield on a green light?
Yes, to other traffic and to pedestrians lawfully in the intersection or an adjacent crosswalk (CVC 21451(a)).
What does a flashing yellow or flashing red light mean?
Flashing yellow: slow down and go on with care; you do not need to stop. Flashing red: the same as a STOP sign (Handbook, "Traffic Signals").
Test yourself
Kees' three questions on this rule, the “Did you know?” facts and his tip come with the drive, in Voorrah! Pro.
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